As announced by Variety & Deadline, Inigo Pascual is taking another massive leap into his international career by joining the lead cast of FOX's upcoming Musical Drama "Monarch," with an all-star cast that includes Oscar-winning Susan Sarandon and country star Trace Adkins. This is a huge step not only for Inigo, but for FOX as they make a significant impact in diversifying the cast with a Filipino actor as one of the leads, and an inspiration to others as they look to crossover into Hollywood.
The musical drama was created by Melissa London Hilfers and stars Susan Sarandon and Anna Friel. "Monarch" is a multi-generational musical drama that centers around the Romans, America's first family of Country music. The new show will debut midseason for Fox on January 30, 2022, immediately after the NFC Championship Game, with the show's second episode airing on February 1, 2022.
"The Romans have created a country music dynasty but when their reign as country royalty is put in jeopardy, Nicolette will stop at nothing to protect her family's legacy."
FOX
The news was announced on the week of Inigo's 24th Birthday, making it one to always remember. For the past few years, the young talent has been making waves with his music internationally, releasing his latest international album, "Options," and his latest single, "Danger," featuring Common Kings and DJ Flict.
Last year he was featured in Jo Koy's Netflix Comedy Special "In his Element."
He's been working hard making opportunities for himself on the global stage and his hard work continues to pay off. You can catch Inigo's journey of crossing over here on the MYX original series "The Crossover."
ABOUT INIGO PASCUAL:
Inigo Pascual is a young, international pop superstar from the Philippines with over 4M+ social media followers. His 2016 release “Dahil Sa’yo,” a song he penned himself, topped Billboard PH charts at #1 for 3 months and remains as the most dominant OPM (original pilipino music) release in history. A tireless worker in constant demand from his millions of fans, Inigo turned his attention toward the international market in 2019, collaborating with Australian-Chinese vlogger and musician, Wengie, Singaporean rapper Akasha, GRAMMY-nominated reggae artist J Boog as well as UK/US popular boybands, New Rules and PRETTYMUCH. He worked with GRAMMY award-winning producers from Manila to Los Angeles, CA on a solo album, giving birth to his lead single, “Options” and island pop hit “Catching Feelings.” Inigo became a familiar name in media and international radio while doing promo rounds in Los Angeles, New York, and even taking the stage during halftime at an NBA game. Radio airplay was followed by appearances in San Francisco, London, Toronto, Tokyo, and Sydney on popular stations like IHeartRadio in the US, SBS Pop Radio in Australia and BBC Radio in the UK. The “Catching Feelings” (Bimwala Remix) charted on Top 5 new songs on stations like Island 98.5 and HI93 in Hawaii. He has recently been part of 88Rising's exclusive online festival, "Asia Rising Forever" and performed "Catching Feelings" on Jo Koy's Netflix special, "In His Elements", with the track racing to the top of Shazam Charts in various cities globally.
After album singles “Should Be Me,” and “Lost” dropped in 2020, Inigo joined a band of international artists assembled by Tarsier Records for “RISE” - a cross-cultural unity track featuring Eric Bellinger (USA), Sam Concepcion (PH), Moophs (PH), Zee Avi (Malaysia), and Vince Nantes (USA), putting him in front of a new category of listeners and proving that no pandemic can stop his international track. To close off his 2020 streak, Inigo releases “Always” - a dancehall-pop tune that sprouted with “RISE” co-collaborators, Vince Nantes, Sam Concepcion and Moophs. He plans to release his “Options” album in 2021.
"11:59" is the first international single for the incredible artist, KZ Tandingan with Tarsier Records. MYX Global had the chance to chat with KZ about the single and its meaning, the one-take music video, and writing it with grammy-nominated producer, Luigie “Lugo” Gonzales, Paulino Lorenzo, and Idrise Ward-El. Don't wait, listen to KZ's latest track below!
Before releasing her latest track, KZ kept busy in 2020 and released songs like “My Hair, My Say” and performed “Nag-iisa Na Naman” in BBC Radio London, which blew away the DJs interviewing her. Early 2021, KZ was also tasked to sing the first full Filipino Disney song, “Gabay” for “Raya the Last Dragon.” Now, she ventures again into the global scene with "11:59."
The track has been 2 years in the making as she recorded the soulful ballad in Los Angeles in 2019, after taking the stage in ASAP Natin 'To Bay Area. She constantly rehearsed everywhere before hitting the studio as KZ wanted to be prepared when it was time to hit the studio. The song talks about running out of time and how much things can change in a minute or in this case, 59 seconds. KZ said, "11:59 is about lovers and their journey in love, figuring out the next step into the relationship."
Adding to the excitement and nerves of releasing the song was working with producer, Lugo Gonzales as she strived for perfection in the recording studio. After meeting KZ in LA, Lugo Gonzales said she's ready to it the international stage. "We did our research and knew she was an amazing musician. [We] Had doubts because other artists recorded the song but she was able to capture what the song was about and completely destroyed it." Needless to say, KZ understood the assignment.
During the media con, KZ talked about being nervous and excited as she wasn't sure if the song will ever be released, but everything fell into place. The music video was shot during the pandemic and featured 6 different set ups all to be recorded in one continuous take. KZ mentioned always wanting to do a music video at this scale and now it finally came true!
Everything from recording the track, mastering it, and filming the music video all lead to a culmination of 2 years of hard work and KZ's next step in her career. If you need to catch up on what she's been up to, check out her "The Crossover" special when she performed at the London Barrio Fiesta.
ABOUT KZ Tandingan
KZ won the grand prize at the first season of The X Factor Philippines in 2012. Since then, she has been called “Asia’s Soul Supreme” as she continues to excite the music industry with her exemplary talent. She has paved a way for herself in the industry as she has evolved to be an artist who dares to be different, edgy and authentic with her sound, look and style.
In 2013, she launched her self-titled debut album, “KZ Tandingan,” which birthed the massive hit - “Scared To Death.” Following this success, her sophomore album entitled, “Soul Supremacy” did not disappoint. It is already certified gold and platinum, carrying the single, “Labo,” which also made the album garner countless awards from prestigious musical award-giving bodies in the Philippines, such as Album of the Year: 2018 for Awit Awards and Star Awards for Music. KZ was also People Asia’s People of the Year during that same year. KZ catapulted into the international scene after joining a singing contest in China, “Singer 2018,” where her performance went viral. The said competition was also joined by singer, Jessie J.
In 2019, KZ made history as she is the first Filipino to perform a sold- out concert in Dubai World Trade Center Arena. She’s had multiple solo concerts locally and globally, and has performed alongside the likes of Boyz II Men.
KZ continues to explore her sound as she creates more music. Just recently, she released a Wedding EP, “Simula,” together with her husband, TJ Monterde, which is a collection of songs that were inspired by their relationship and born out of their expression of love for each other.
Cover Photo Credit: KZ Tandingan Facebook
After 2 years since her last visit, Kiana V touched down in the Big Apple and announced her selection as Spotify EQUAL Philippines's Artist of the Month! To celebrate the announcement, Kiana V was featured on Spotify's NYC Times Square billboard. The audio industry is not an equitable space: only 1 in 5 artists are women, according to the 2020 Annenberg study so this is monumental. Kiana V will continue to take fans behind the scenes with her travels to see the billboard, perform at Harlem Nights, and across the country in the MYX original series documenting her musical journey, called “The Crossover.” The docuseries TV show will air globally on linear TV, MYX.GLOBAL digital and @myxglobal social platforms. You can watch previous episode clips here.
After 2 years since her last visit, Kiana V touched down in the Big Apple and announced her selection as Spotify EQUAL Philippines's Artist of the Month. To celebrate the announcement, Kiana V was featured on Spotify's NYC Times Square billboard. This is monumental as only 1 in 5 artists in the audio industry are women. Kiana V will continue to take fans behind the scenes with her travels to see her billboard, perform at Harlem Nights and across the country in the MYX original series documenting her musical journey, called “The Crossover.” The docuseries TV show will air globally on linear TV, MYX.GLOBAL digital and @myxglobal social platforms.
Kiana recently shared her 5-track EP Dazed. The daughter of the Philippines' most celebrated musician, Gary Valenciano, music has always been a force in Kiana's life. The Filipina singer/songwriter has already made a name for herself in the Philippines from the success of her collaboration with fellow Filipino artist Curtismith on "Does She Know," and is poised to bring her R&B/Soul sound to the rest of the world.
2016 ushered in the Kiana we see now - a fully-formed, independent woman of color not afraid to use her voice - beginning with her debut single “Circles." Her latest track "Safe Place," was released via Tarsier Records and 88Rising. Grammy.com also named her as an artist pushing Filipino music to the forefront.
Now splitting her time between Los Angeles and Manila, Kiana still holds close to her roots. Her father continues to be a source of inspiration in her career, and collaborates with those who know her best. Her go-to photographer is childhood friend, DJ Magbanua who shot photos for her "Dazed" EP. Jesse Barrera, the co-producer of the EP, is a Filipino-American who's worked with other Filipino musicians including Jeff Bernat, AJ Rafael, and Jeremy Passion. These are the people who know and understand Kiana best, and who have seamlessly been able to tell the "Dazed" story. "It's a soft exploration of how self-love affects the love we are able to give to others," Kiana says of the EP.
The EP's title track "Dazed" is a contemplative number about being overwhelmed by your inner thoughts. Kiana's feather light voice dances over a luxurious yet wispy synth soundscape that slowly builds over the track's four minute run-time until it reaches a climax of crushing emotionality with Kiana proclaiming, "Set me free."
"How Do I" opens with a cascade of Kiana's honeyed oo's and aah's and the sound of rushing water that effortlessly pulls you in. "If I can't love myself, how do I love you?" Kiana entreats on the wall of sound chorus. Kiana explains, "it focuses on the need to confront things within before being able to pour anything out."
"This song is a moment of quiet introspection...a personal exchange between negative and positive self talk in an attempt to find inner healing."
KIANA V ON THE TRACK "DAZED"
The EP's focus track "Better" is a song about personal salvation and for Kiana, she morphs heartbreak into a newfound confidence with the self-assured lyrics "I could do better." As Kiana reflects on the track, "It gives me a feeling of sweet, reckless abandon...it's an awakening to newfound courage."
On "Simple" Kiana distills love to its essence. Over blissed out synths and silky multi-tracked vocals, she croons "We don’t hear the outside pressure / Break it down to simple pleasures." Here, Kiana's understated vocal dexterity really shines.
The EP closes with "Only You" which is a love song open to interpretation. Kiana intentionally left the meaning open-ended because it could be about love for oneself or for a partner. It follows Kiana's journey throughout the EP from self-doubt to clarity. "It can be about the moment everything falls into place," she shares.
Kiana V is ready to take over and we're along for the ride. Make sure to keep up with all things Kiana V and stay tuned on MYX Global to see how her journey unfolds in The Crossover series.
